1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)
Yes, and yes, even though I'm not sure how much.

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )
I'd say winter, for the reasons others have mentioned before.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories)b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categoriesc) Combine all eras keep same/similar categoriesd) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categoriesd) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate)

I'd say b), but don't get rid of too many. I think the list Jedi_Lover made is pretty good, though I'd like to keep Best Villain as well.

4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards?
As far as voting or nominating goes, I'm not sure. I think that this year will be very light in participation as not much has been written thanks to both the move and the truncation issue, and I'm not sure there's a way around that.

I wasn't going to reply to this, but I keep coming back to it, and figured that, as a former manager of fanfic, I should share some of my thoughts/experiences.

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)

Personally, I had my fill of participating when they were run by the mods and I spent hours moderating snide and nasty comments from all sides. I haven't participated since 2005, so it's been a good, long while. I don't know that I would want to participate, per se, but given that I had a hand in running the Summer 2004 and the Winter 2005 awards, I might have insights to share. Such as DON'T POST WHAT ORDER NOMINEES "FINISHED" IN AND HOW MANY VOTES THEY GOT. I cannot stress this enough. Whomever had that "brilliant" idea really should have got a smack upside the head. Talk about hurt feelings.

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )

There needs to be prep time, and since this survey is being held in summer, I would say winter. When in winter is debatable. A lot of writers are college students, and the end of term in December is hectic, but it always seemed to be a better turn-out for the Winter Awards than the Summer Awards.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices) a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories) b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categories c) Combine all eras keep same/similar categories d) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categories d) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate)
Do NOT combine the eras. That way lies madness. For one, Beyond has a much higher volume than the other two eras combined, and it will be more difficult to get an even representation, and everyone will feel slighted if one era receives more nominations than the others.

I would say fewer categories, but not a minuscule amount. These are supposed to be fun, like the MTV Movie Awards, not anything elitist like the Oscars.

4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards

The awards were fun in the beginning, but participation dropped a lot when people began to brag about being a "winner" and use it to justify their behaviour towards others. It became "elitist" and the same handful of people were winning over and over. There need to be limits. If something has won before, I say it can't be nominated again. This doesn't extend to the authors, obviously, but how well would it go over in the movie industry if, say, a film is still eligible for Best Picture twenty years after its release?

Let people have fun, have enough prep time that volunteers aren't scrambling. Give authors plenty of time to submit excerpts. Don't slack off and make one person do all the work. And for the mods, don't let winners lord it over other users like it actually gives them status, because it doesn't.

I actually hosted the Beyond awards a couple of years back. I wanted to do it again the year after but it was such a large amount of time to write the entire show (which I thought mine was different than both Before and Saga that year, I guess I had a different approach but there is no right answer on how to do it) and to calculate everything and what not, Fels advised me not to host again because I was busier at work. Anyway, just throwing that out there.

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating?

Firstly, I don't know if we should. Seems like we have a lot of lurkers but not a great many active reviewers. I think next year this will change when Episode 7 is a lot closer to coming out and the fandom will really pick up once again. If people are not reviewing as much right now, it's going to be hard to get them to take the time to go through all the things it takes to nominate and then vote on fics. It was asked in the past that they copy and paste links and etc. I just don't think lurkers want to do that. All three eras combined on these new boards and my story which receives no reviews stays on the 1st page for quite sometime. A couple of years ago when I hosted, almost nothing got more than 1 nomination and when it came to voting, the winner would have maybe 4 votes and most categories might have had 8 or 9 people voting TOTAL.

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )

If we did do them, I think winter is optimal. Some section of the population is always going to be busy at some point of the year. So to say college students are too busy that time of year, if you do it in summer you can point to something else, like too many people are on family vacations or whatever. In winter at least people in school do eventually get time off after the semester and people take vacation but for the most part generally stay home for some time of that because of the holidays.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)
a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories)
b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categories
c) Combine all eras keep same/similar categories
d) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categories
d) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate)

At one time I thought that the lack of noms and lack of voting, it would be better to have MOST categories be shared between all eras. Then you could have Best Before, Best Saga, Best Beyond. A lot of people have brought up that Beyond is so much more popular (I won't say popular out right, because I just don't think SW fan fiction is popular right now, any era, at least not here, I don't know about elsewhere) that it would just win. So I guess just keep same categories for the most part. Maybe instead of having Best Female O/C and best Male O/C just make it one category for best O/C. Get rid of the Best Co-authored fic. I remember that year, me and Fels were nominated for Ruin. We were the only ones nominated for anything. That was the only award I've ever won and it didn't feel like winning when no one else was co-authoring fics in that Era.

I think there should be some more fun things but it can't be so obscure that it will be hard for people to find things in stories to be able to nominate. Best Kiss to steal from MTV would be a good one as far as fun categories.4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards

I actually hosted the Beyond awards a couple of years back. I wanted to do it again the year after but it was such a large amount of time to write the entire show ...

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I completely forgot about the long drawn out show. I would be happy if there wasn't a show portion at all. Instead, people nominate, they vote and then the results are given later on. Personally, I think with so many lurkers doing a show would be a waste of time. Before when we had a lot of people interacting the 'show' part of the awards wasn't too bad.

I actually hosted the Beyond awards a couple of years back. I wanted to do it again the year after but it was such a large amount of time to write the entire show ...

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I completely forgot about the long drawn out show. I would be happy if there wasn't a show portion at all. Instead, people nominate, they vote and then the results are given later on. Personally, I think with so many lurkers doing a show would be a waste of time. Before when we had a lot of people interacting the 'show' part of the awards wasn't too bad.

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Yeah it was about 4 hours just sitting there and posting each category plus all the entertainment things people made and such.

Yeah it was about 4 hours just sitting there and posting each category plus all the entertainment things people made and such.

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I really appreciate all the work the volunteers did in the past, but in this day and age of everybody wanting immediate gratification, I don't think people have the patience. They probably want the volunteers to twitter the award results to them.

Yeah it was about 4 hours just sitting there and posting each category plus all the entertainment things people made and such.

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I really appreciate all the work the volunteers did in the past, but in this day and age of everybody wanting immediate gratification, I don't think people have the patience. They probably want the volunteers to twitter the award results to them.

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You are probably right. I think if people were nominated and felt they had a chance to win, I think SOME of those people would sit through a ceremony like they used to do. But I think just random voters or authors who might not be up for anything, why would they really have an interest unless they are just super BFF's with someone who's nommed for a ton of things?

If anything, instead of doing a show out of it, maybe just release a couple of category winners per day... Don't know if that's a good idea but just throwing it out there to mull over. After I did those awards that year, I sent in a list of things I thought would make things better. I'll try to find that PM and see what would be useful from it and post it here, if anything.

What you need to take into account is the activity of the forum. When I joined the forum ten years ago, there were that many postings that the stories soon went onto the 3rd or fourth page, and that was when you had only posted the story the day before. There was even a separate awards "competition" for original characters. So the size of it would have to reflect it, for instance, are there enough song fics for a category to warrant it?

You would have to make it clear though that a character category (for instance, if there isn't a separate category for original characters, non humans, etc) that all types of characters are eligible for nomination so that you don't just get characters of one type.

If you don't want an era to be under represented, what about having separate nomination category for eras, have a semi-final for the era like you get for dog breeds in a show competition and then have a final voting round with three choices, one from each era?

I think that the numbers of people participating in the voting is a reflection on the amount of activity of the forum. Because it isn't as active as it used to be, it might get more people taking part because people might think that there is more of a chance of them winning, or it may not simply because there aren't as many people active as there used to be, if that makes any sense.

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)

Yes, and yes.

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )

For me personally, summer is more convenient. Overall, I think winter is better. People are more likely to be reading on those long, cold winter days and nights.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories)
b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categories
c) Combine all eras keep same/similar categories
d) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categories
d) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate)

I was always a fan of separate eras and with a lot of categories. I would like to see them remain on that line if possible.

4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards

Possibly colors? I don't know. I like the idea of a prize, but not sure what would constitute a good one of colors aren't possible.

Am participating in the survey because Mav asked so nicely for more than 10 people to do so one page one...

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)

As outlandish as this suggestion is... how about waiting until next spring or summer? That way, we've all had enough time to prepare and get back up to speed for real from the move that was only supposed to take a month. And I think I'd be participating... what's the fun in ignoring the awards process?

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )

If we do them this year... November. (Before Thanksgiving, but after the kids, for those that have children, have gotten back to school and settled in.)

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories)b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categoriesc) Combine all eras keep same/similar categoriesd) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categoriesd) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate)

Keep the categories as they are. (But maybe add some things just for fun. And take away the Best Grammar/Spelling category from the NSWFF. Adding it didn't make sense at the time and still doesn't.)

4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards?

Other than posting for participation on other parts of the forum where fic people possibly hang out? Dunno.

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)
Yes.. yes noming and voting

2. If done, when should we have them?No time like the present

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories) :yesb) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categories :noc) Combine all eras keep same/similar categories :Nod) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categories Nod) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate) Yes

4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards?

Colours for the nominated 2 weeks before, colours for six months for the big winners, colours for 2 weeks for the minor winners. Have the awards pinned for people to browse, even after it takes place. All noms beforehand must have their FF in their signature.

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)
Honestly, I was never a big fan of the awards because of the drama it seemed to cause. Looking at the state the boards are in right now also doesn't seem to make it worth it, because things are fairly slow. Maybe in a year, closer to Episode 7 coming out, but now I would advise against it. And I probably wouldn't participate either.

2. If done, when should we have them?Wait a year.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories)
No. It was such a huge thing in the past, and in all honesty got a bit ridiculous. b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categories :
This would be better.c) Combine all eras keep same/similar categories :
No, it'd still get complicated.d) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categories
No.d) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate) Yes
Maybe...depends on what the categories would be.4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards?
Awarding colors or titles, maybe...getting your story sticky-ed at the top of the forum...and waiting until Episode 7.

I'll add my opinion as a reader/lurker rather than as a writer, since I've given up on writing anything outside of my RPG.

1a. Should we do the awards this year?No strong opinion either way. The rest of these answers assume that the decision is made to have awards.

1b. Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)Probably not nominating, since the number I've read so far is miniscule. But I'd be happy to vote once the nominations are in, after I take an afternoon to read through them.

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )I'd say winter, since that gives you an easy-to-define eligibility period by simply using the calendar year. But summer would work as well, and I don't know what RL issues either would pose.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)
a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories)
b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categories
c) Combine all eras keep same/similar categories
d) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categories
d) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate)I don't know what the categories were last time, so I'll have to wing it here. Separate eras are a necessity, otherwise Before will get lost in the mess. Once best fic in each era is determined, have a runoff between those three to determine an overall winner. I'd suggest limiting the number of "serious" categories and maximizing the number of "fun" categories; after all the point is to have fun. One possible "fun" category for the first awards post-move could be Fic You Most Wish Wasn't Truncated.

4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards?Colors/titles for winners is the obvious answer, but let's dig a little deeper. I like the suggestion immediately above of taking winning stories and stickying them. I'd suggest the best fic in each era could be stickied for three months to help introduce newbies. How about a prize for the voter with the most "correct" votes (votes that match the actual winner)? That would get people who might otherwise ignore the awards to vote if they too can get colors for a week. Gotta think outside the box here.

We took a year off due to the move, but we've noticed that in recent years it seems as though interest in the FanFic awards has dropped off pretty significantly. So instead of just doing them, we wanted do this quick little survey to see what kind of interest there is and for what type of awards. As always, if the awards are done, they are user based and we the mods really don't have any say over exactly how they are run, but we do want to get a feel on what people think. If it is decided to do them, this information will be passed to those running the awards and used for them to decide on how they are run.

Please let us know your thought/comments either here in this thread or via PM and please encourage other to do the survey!

Thanks!
~DWH, mav and Luna

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)

I have a strong interest in participating.

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )

Summer time so that the younger fans can participate.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)
a) Have a very similar format as in years past (separate eras, large amount of categories)
b) Have a very similar format as in years past but with much fewer categories
c) Combine all eras keep same/similar categories
d) Combine all eras and have a smaller number of categories
d) A few of the 'big' categories and more 'fun' categories (Either combined era's or separate)

Smallest amount of general categories. For example, PT era, OT era, ST era, and Solo spin-offs. Perhaps an Alternate Universe category would be nice as well (i.e., if you were to reboot the prequels how would you do them? ;P) Smaller categories could include best log lines, best treatments, best titles. (We're not getting paid for this, after all) A screenplay category..?

4. What are some things that you think would get more people to participate in the awards?

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Constructive feedback, on the writing itself, rather than on plot elements, etc.. Easier said than done, but fan fiction is a good way to practice your craft. Having said that, the more casual fan ficcers (most of us) could be encouraged to participate in smaller categories (see: above) Unfortunately, we're not getting paid for any of this, after all.

1. Should we do the awards this year? Do you have an interest in participating? (Not just volunteering but nominating and voting.)YES! I've been wanting to ask about bringing the awards back. I'd be interested, this year, to volunteer in the NSWFF area.

2. If done, when should we have them? (Summer? Winter? )Summer, is the best. If we really truncate it, A summer and winter is possible, especially if you throw out all the shows, just have a nomination process, where people suggest the best stories, a voting process, where everyone can read the exerpts and vote, and the announce the winners in a post, not worrying about any shows and stuff like that.

3. If we do awards should they: (Please feel free to expand on your answers and even have multiple answer choices)I don't think the number of categories was the real problem. Keep all the same categories, and awards categories for Star Wars and Non Star Wars categories. To make it very easy for everyone, just cut out all the shows and making it read like the oscars. Like I said above, I'd be happy to have a list of nominated fics for all the categories, read through the excerpts, and vote for the ones I like, and then on awards day and time, just announce the winners. I would think that would make things a little easier.

I don't like the idea of combining NSWFF and SWFF catagories, except for probably give one or two awards that does combine the two (like the suggested overall best story, and best author). Someone suggested these mainstream categories and I agree, have these categories in Star Wars saga:

Best Alternative UniverseBest CanonBest All Around

StyleBest CrossoverBest Short Story (includes Vignette, Songfic and poems)Best EpicBest Series

Character

Best Canon InterpretationBest Original Character

AuthorBest AuthorBest New AuthorBest Collaborative

For Non Star Wars, you can probably streamline a fewer categories, probably:

Best CanonBest Alternate Universe

Best Short Story (includes Vignette, Songfic and poems)Best Epic

Best Canon InterpretationBest Original Character

Best AuthorBest New AuthorBest Story of the Year

As for a prize, make a thread that always stays at the top where the winners of each catagory are listed by year. I think we have something like that already, but lock it at the top so it's the first thing people see in each saga. Just seeing your name and story listed there is quite an honor in of itself.

then on awards day and time, just announce the winners. I would think that would make things a little easier.

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Yes! I know a lot of effort was put into the awards ceremony but it was so long and drawn out. It was like watching the Oscars. I think either simply announce the winners or keep the awards ceremony less than an hour or two.

Mav and I have discussed this and since it's just the two of us, we will be scaling down the ceremony, whether it's we have an actual ceremony with a winner announced every few minutes, or we completely just hack it down to one single announcement listing all the winners has yet to be decided.